The Fabulous LEGO Ladies of Milwaukee think science, robots and programming are cool.

So cool, in fact, that the Girl Scout troop and Lego League team will be showing off their skills at STEMfest on Saturday at Discovery World at Pier Wisconsin, a free day celebrating science at the museum.

"They are extremely excited," said coach Michelle Mueller, noting that the public exhibition of the team's robot will be great prep for upcoming competitions. "One of the key components of Lego League is professionalism and sharing what you know with the public."

The Fabulous LEGO Ladies, made up mostly of Scouts from Troop 1012, are one of nine Time Warner-sponsored Girl Scout squads that will be running their motorized Lego automatons through various challenges at Discovery World's pilot house.

The theme for this year's Lego League program is "food factor," challenging students to examine such issues as food safety, water contamination and public health.

STEMfest visitors will get to see the Scouts' programmed robots run through games illustrating those topics, Mueller said, including such missions as avoiding bacteria, disposing of viruses and safely harvesting food.

Members of the Fabulous LEGO Ladies from Milwaukee watch Wally the Robot move a lever that dumps pink bacteria as part of a project LEGO competition. From left are Syndney Budney, 12; Angelica Medina, 11; Kirstin Hackbarth, 11; Samantha Budney, 12, and Chelsea Budney, 10 watch the robot make its move. Photo by Rick Wood.

"The entire program is focused around food handling and making sure that your food gets to your table," Mueller said.

Now in its third year, STEMfest also will host about 20 corporate, nonprofit and educational exhibitors showing different ways children can learn more about education and careers in science, technology, engineering and math - often referred to as STEM.

Growing Power, FIRST Robotics and the Urban Ecology Center are among the science fair favorites back this year. And the Society of Women Engineers, the Milwaukee School of Engineering's Women in Technology program and the Audubon Technology & Communications Center are new among the lineup along Discovery World's promenade, offering information on programs.

"The work that we are doing is having an impact," said Stacy Zaja, spokeswoman for Time Warner, which is sponsoring the event as part of its nationwide, $100 million Connect a Million Minds initiative launched a couple of years ago. "We really value our work with the Girl Scouts because there is a need for more women in science careers."

The Kohl's Design It! Lab will be extra-busy during STEMfest, with the private workshops in the back for Girl Scouts as well as special activities in the lab's "quick shop" up front for the public, said Tom Joy, design strategist for Discovery World.

"We've got a bunch of cool things going on," Joy said. "STEMfest is all about being able to get people into the Design It! Lab and tools into people's hands."

Scouts will be able to design and craft different fashion accessories and jewelry from recycled materials like Bubble Wrap using "tons of new cool tools" they've probably never used before, including vacuum formers and laser cutters.

Anyone visiting STEMfest will be able to use the lab to work on similar projects, including building vases from recycled water bottles or crafting jewelry from paper.

"We'll be doing improvisation with textiles, where we give people sewing needles, scissors and scrap fabrics," Joy said. "It is a buffet with fabrics, and you take and design whatever you want. It is one of our more open-ended projects, and people really love it."

IF YOU GO

What: STEMfest (science, technology, engineering, math)

When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday

Where: Discovery World at Pier Wisconsin, 500 N. Harbor Drive

Cost: Free, including admission to all Discovery World exhibits

About Stanley A. Miller II

Stan Miller is a Milwaukee native. He started his career at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel shortly after graduating from Northwestern University in 1997 -- a professional journey that began on the night copy desk and transitioned over the years to covering personal technology, general assignment city news, real estate, business news and general features as well as technology. Despite those evolving roles, Stan has always held firm to his passion (and near-obsession) with technology and how it is changing our culture and society. Stan is also the defacto geek culture writer, with a keen interest in and appreciation of gaming, comics, fantasy art and science fiction. He has stood in many lines for midnight sales of the latest games and consumer electronics despite the fact he played with them months or years beforehand at trade shows like the Consumer Electronics Show and the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Stan is much more than a game-boy, however and is always evangelizing the good, the bad and the ugly of technology, whether that is through public speaking venues or teaching classes at local institutions of higher education. When he is not teching around, he is most likely either playing fetch with his dog, Sophie, or riding Wisconsin's beautiful trails on his roadbike.